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Thought I should probably start a thread, given that a few people have suggested it. For my sins, my first car was a 1985 Hyundai Stellar. Bought back in 1997, when the sun still shone, I had more hair, and the world was generally a better place.

This may be the earliest photo I have, I think from 1998:

Anyway, I drove everywhere in it, and clocked up over 100k miles before I was given an Alfa Romeo 75. So I took the Stellar off the road for some much needed TLC. Made some progress on it - Rebuilt all the suspension, fitted a rebuilt Cortina* rear axle, Princess 4 pot front calipers and Capri vented discs etc - before a couple of house moves and renovations put it on the back burner.

* before anyone says they are identical underneath, there are some differences. I fitted a replacement axle fairly early on in my ownership, only to fit that not only was the propshaft flange the wrong size, the UJ was totally different so I couldn't even fit a new yoke. Finding a company on the day before New Year's Eve who could cut off the end, weld a new UJ on and balance it wasn't too easy, especially one that was accessible by push bike!

Anyway, late last year I found some renewed motivation, and have been working on it when time and money permit. Here is what it looked like in October:

OMG barn find?

Front suspension OK at first glance...

...but it has turned out the calipers had seized (so are away being rebuilt) and all the (brand new) ball joint boots had perished:

Quite a bit of welding is needed too, but I had a setback just before Christmas when we were burgled and my welder stolen

Crusty roof rail

I've cleared some of the crap away from it now (it's not stored at mine - I'd love to own somewhere that big!) so might be able to get more photos. Currently working on the rear brakes, and disappointed to find that the shotblasted rear axle is now starting to rust after two coats of POR15 and 7 years storage under cover...

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It was last on the road in 2003, but I probably fitted the new joints a year or so afterwards. That was back when I bought mainly on cost...

At least I haven't actually torqued anything up, so will be a simple job to replace. But how do you know the quality of anything on eBay or the like? Easy to simply pay more for the same poor quality. Might use somewhere like Burton Power.

Thanks I dread to think of the time and money I've put into it! Probably the most expensive bit was the windscreen which had to be custom made, but fortunately not out of my own pocket. It was early 2006 and I had decided to weld up a few holes in the panel below the winscreen, using a genuine Hyundai panel I had managed to obtain. I checked with Autoglass to see if windscreens were still available and they had one in stock, so seeing as they didn't charge any extra for removing on top of the supply and fit charge, I got them to take the old one out. This was a wise move.

I finished the welding and arranged for them to refit the new screen. At this point we had sold the house where the car was and were living in rented accommodation some 150 miles away, so I went down for the weekend when they were due to visit. I was most pissed off to get a phone call saying they they were very sorry, but had damaged the screen when putting it on the van, and to make matters worse they, nor Hyundai had any replacements. Neither did any other glass fitter I tried. Fortunately I forcibly argued my point that as they took the screen out, they were responsible for putting one in at no extra cost to me, so they agreed to get one made. I think the cost was into four figures...

I didn't know that these were based on the Cortina. How much of it is?

In a nutshell, all the suspension, hubs, brakes etc. The front clip is similar and swappable with a Cortina, but slightly different in that the camber is adjustable - the lower bolt has a slotted hole and an eccentric washer on each end to move the lower wishbone in or out. Maybe this was to cope with larger production tolerances than Ford?

They started off building Cortinas under licence, so presumably wanted to use up any inventory of parts they had. Even the gauges were Lucas designed, and made in the UK although I don't know if they are similar to Ford items.

From the 1987 model year they moved to a MacPherson strut front end, and added a Panhard rod to the rear axle, as well as updating the interior slightly.

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I've been thinking, when I do get it back on the road, what to do about paintwork? Although the body is pretty solid there's a bit of rot around the rear wheel arches, and doors/bonnet/boot lid are all from a mint donor car I bought in 2004 which was a non matching gold colour. So leaving it unpainted will look shit.

I'd probably want to keep it mainly silver, but later in its life I went for the two tone look which I think it looked quite smart. Found this old photo (sorry for the quality) so you get the idea:

(Notice my old bike on the back of the car, together with my girlfriend (now wife) and her 205 XS. I was helping her move house, hence the trailer with bed in it!)

Thing is, it's normally done (as it was in my case) to hide rust - matt black covers a multitude of sins - so am having second thoughts...any opinions?

When looking through the old photos I also found one of the engine, looking quite clean under there so must have been not long after I bought it!

Coincidentally I paid Ã‚Â£400 for mine also in 1997, but being twice the age I think I was ripped off! I didn't think it was a bad car either, just dated dynamically for the late 80s. But in terms of reliability and equipment I couldn't really fault it. The rear reading lights were especially well used as a teenager; in fact I recall losing a small red fruit in there many years ago

Back to the present day, I shotblasted and painted the petrol tank a good few years ago. The outside isn't looking too bad (just dusty)...

...but the inside, having no petrol in for so long, has suffered:

I have a cunning plan, involving electrolysis, which should hopefully clean it up inside without costing too much in time and money.

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I have a confession to make, back in my banger racing days I got through a few Stellars, they were rare even in the late '90's/early 2000's. Very tough motors but the quality of the interior was pretty dire, I remember the door cards being especially flimsy. I had heard the early ones used Cortina front suspension but never saw one so thought it was a bit of an urban legend, this is the first proper "Cortina Mk6" one i've ever seen!

I sold the diff out of one to a guy who raced F2 stock cars and he later found to his annoyance they were completely different to the Cortina diffs he used. I didn't offer him his money back though.

I'd deffo use one as a daily driver. I think the styling has aged very well!

You managed to pull in a Hyundai Stellar? That's pretty er, stellar...

I think it was more despite the car! And there have been spectacular failures too - back while I was at Uni in Sheffield it was a sunny day just before the Easter weekend. I was just becoming mates with a girl who I rather liked, so I had the great idea of trying to impress her taking her to the seaside (Bridlington) in my car. Why I thought she would be impressed with a trip to a seedy seaside town in my Grandadmobile Stellar I'm now not so sure of, but at the time it made sense.

Anyway, it was such a lovely day that we were both wearing shorts. I had the foresight to bring a pair of trousers with me, which, as we decided to stay into the evening was a wise idea as the temperature dropped. Being the chivalrous kind of guy I am, when she got cold I donated my trousers to her - still hoping I would be able to get her out of them later.

In one of the pubs we met a huge guy and his girlfriend. We got chatting and it turned out he was a bouncer at the local club (Harbour Lights?) They suggested we came along, so later that evening we did. Bearing in mind this was a strictly shirt and shoes kind of place rather than T shirt and trainers, the fact that I was still in T shirt, trainers and shorts made me feel a little self conscious. Especially as I was sober so I could drive us back afterwards! We met up with our new 'friend' and fortunately he let us in, much to the surprise and displeasure of those that were being turned away because their shoes weren't shiny enough!

After a while she explained to me that she was actually gay, and not only that she fancied the girlfriend of the bouncer we met earlier. To make matters worse, this girl was also in the club and obviously of a similar persuasion as I caught them snogging passionately. It's not a turn on when she chooses the girl instead of you...

After a while they both disappeared but I stuck around in case they were still there. I needed to give her a lift back as I couldn't just abandon her! I saw the bouncer furiously looking for someone, so I kept a low profile (not easy being the only one in shorts!)

At the end of the evening it became clear that they had both left the building, at which point I became rather nervous that the bouncer would blame me for it and give me a beating. I managed to leave via a window in the Gents and got back to my car, where I spent the night in some woodland.

Not having a sleeping bag or indeed any warm clothes I did not sleep too well, so was listening to Radio 1 early on Good Friday morning. They asked people to phone in to say if they were having a good Friday or a bad Friday - I was having a very bad Friday, being over 100 miles from home, having slept in my shorts alone on the back seat of my car, after the girl I fancied turned out to be the other way inclined and had disappeared with another girl. Whilst she was wearing my bloody trousers!

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There was actually a slightly happier ending to the story (she was impressed (and apologetic) that I hung around all night for her) and we did get it together briefly a few months later. However, she was rather drunk when this happened, and I think that repeated rhythmic motion caused her to throw up quite violently. At least I prefer to think it was motion induced, and not anything to do with my close physical contact...

Fortunately she managed to turn her head to one side, and was sick over the edge of the bed. Less fortunately, my clothes had previously been chucked on the floor in reckless abandon, and took the brunt of it. I confess that I didn't stay the night as this spoilt the moment somewhat, and after washing my clothes the best I could I left before she woke up.

ANYWAY, this is supposed to be a car blog so back to the Stellar. I made up a solution of washing soda (sodium carbonate) to fill the petrol tank with, using a sacrificial anode from a piece of steel tube. Connected 12 V from a battery charger via a headlight bulb as a current limiter between the tank body and the anode, and let electrolysis begin!

And this is what had built up on the anode in an hour

After a few hours the bulb goes dim as the current reduces, so I have to take the anode out and clean it. Ideally the anode would be large in comparison with the item you're trying to remove the rust from, but I'm limited by what can fit down the neck of the tank.

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To mark the genesis of my fleet project thread I here present my new car: a 1997 Nissan Micra Shape-

It really looks that good. There is a reason for this: its previous owner was an old lady who loved the thing so much so she made every effort to keep it in good shape. It originally came from Fleet in the GU postcode which suggests to me it was bought by the present dealer at auction, hence arriving down here in Kent. Before seeing the car I checked its MOT history and its only fails were thanks to broken stoplights, which shows me that it was very well cared for. I suppose an example of this was that on the last MOT, an advisory was a corroded rear silencer. The silencer on the car when I saw it was new. Methinks the lady wanted to keep it as good as possible. It was kept in a garage and so all the bumpers and black trim are very black and the tyres are in very good condition. Spare never used! Also included a free Dettol first aid kit from 1997.
This car has 15000 genuine miles on the clock. We clocked over 15000 during the test drive! The lady owner really only trundled around her village in it and the MOT shows that it only did some meagre miles between tests. This, of course, came at a price. We saw a cherry red Micra from 2002 at the same dealer. Paint was shoddy and when they washed it the boot had massive sections of bare metal and it wasn't very happy. This car, however, is in fabulous condition and there was no contest between the two cars- it really is that good, inside and out. Immaculate interior, driver's airbag, cassette player... all there and all functioning (apart from cassette thanks to new battery and failed display). This meant that I bought it for £1600, £100 over what was my uppermost limit, but I knew I wouldn't see another like this that was in as good shape for a fair while. It was priced very ambitiously, at £1990, so I'm content in the fact I managed to slash a few hundred off the price. There wasn't that much paperwork though. All the dealership received was the logbook with 3 service stamps from 1998, 1999 and 2000, the radio key pass, a National Trust sticker, and the original paperwork holder. I suspect the old lady died and had her car auctioned, and the massive file of paperwork is now someone's egg carton, along will everything else she owned.

As always, this car isn't exactly in showroom condition. While the inside is great and the floor is solid, and the underseal is in great shape, the not undersealed parts need a small looking at. Mainly the rear of the driver's side sill. It's really the only bubbling on the car. I suspect a well aimed stonechip managed to fester over the wintery salted roads, making it rust even more. It's around the size of a 5p piece, and will give me the opportunity to spray the insides of the sill with some chain oil to prevent any further corrosion. Behind the fuel tank there are a few rusty joints- places where the spraygun cannot get paint onto- which some Vactan and Dynax should put to rights. Alternator belt looks original because of the cracking and Nissan badges and will need doing soon as well as the front plate. As much as I like the 90's font and original dealer surround, the dishevelled R and general water ingress is a persistant MOT advisory. It could be the MOT station being strict (and most likely is considering there's a Saxo down the road with far worse blackening), however for the sake of peace of mind and all that, I'll get a new one made. The rear has already been replaced indicating this has happened before.
All in all, I think this is a nice plucky motor. I'll have it by the end of the week; just got to sort out tax, insurance, and it's going to have an MOT. As part of the deal it's getting the MOT and an oil and filter change which will be something ticked off the list. It has some love scratches and chips here and there, but it drives well, is stiff and controllable, and should make out to be a nice summer project!

Well I've been meaning to sign up here in forever, but kept forgetting. Thanks to someone over on another forum I frequent poking me about it recently the subject was forced back into my very brief attention span for long enough to get me to act on the instruction.

I figure that my little varied fleet might bring you lot some amusement...

Now getting the photos together has taken me far longer than I'd expected...so you're gonna get a couple of photos of each car for now, and I'll come back with some more information tomorrow when I've got a bit more time...

Firstly...The Lada. Before anyone asks - in response to the single question I get asked about this car: No, it is not for sale. Took me 13 years and my father's inheritance to find the thing.

Yes, it's got the usual rusty wings...Hoping that will be resolved in the next couple of months.

Next, a proper old Saab. One of the very last 8 valve cars apparently, and all the better for it. I've driven two 16v autos and they were horrible - the auto box works sooooo much better with the torque curve of the 8 valve engine. Just wish it had an overdrive for motorway cruising...

Next up a *real* Skoda...back when they put the engine where it belongs, right out the back. In the best possible colour of course...eye-searingly bright orange.

Seat covers have been added since that photo was taken as it suffers from the usual rotting seat cloth problem that affects virtually all Estelles.

Then we have possibly the world's scruffiest Sinclair C5...

Realised when looking for this that I really need to get some more photos of the thing...I use it often enough after all! We have a dog who's half husky, so this is a really good way of getting him some exercise.

Finally - again, I really need to take more photos of - we have the little Pug 107.

Included for the sake of variety even if it's a bit mainstream! First (and probably to be the only) new car I've bought, and has been a cracking little motor and has asked for very little in return for putting up with nearly three years of Oxford-Milton Keynes commuter traffic, before finally escaping that fate when my housemate moved to a new job. Now it doesn't do many miles and is my default car for "when I've managed to break everything else."

I'll fill in some more details tomorrow - I warn you though that I do tend to ramble...

Hi all, new to the forum. Thought you might be interested in what I've got myself into
I'd been after my first classic car for a while. If it's big and made in the 70s I'm interested. Looked at few things like P6s, Zodiacs, Victors, SD1s and various other things. Problem was I didn't want to spend a boatload of money on something that looked alright but underneath was actually a total heap. The solution was to buy a complete heap in the first place and spend the money fixing it.
So in January I went ahead and bought this from a colleague at work who was moving away and needed to get shot of it.

It's a part finished restoration (I prefer not started) and it needs a whole load of help if it's going to stand any chance of using a road again.
Pros
It's right up my street. Granada Coupes are quite odd and certainly stand out from the norm.
It still has the original engine, box, interior and most trim.
It came with loads of panels I need to repair it (mostly original Ford stock).
It came with so many spares I could probably build a few Granadas and still have stuff left over.
It was cheap.
Cons
Most of the front end has been cut off.
Most of the body structure is quite rotten.
It's going to take me ages.
I work at a restoration company and my boss kindly allows me to keep the car there. So I've got access to all the gear I need to restore it. I've been busy on the car for a while now so will post more pics over the coming days.
Cheers

I thought I'd start a thread for this as I'll probably end up asking all sorts of questions, given that this is my first 'proper' Citroën.

So... the ground clearance lever won't go all the way to the highest setting (all others work), which is bad 'cos the book says I need it to do that in order to check the LHM level. It feels like something's seized, so I don't want to force it. Any ideas for a plan of attack would be much appreciated.

Next up are the wheels. I now have a set of 205 pepperpots that have just gone off for powder coating & I need to get some tyres for them. The handbook says the car should have 165/70R14s on, the wheels came with 185/65R14 on. Any thoughts about what size I should get please? Cheers.